MARILYN MINTER on my fingernails?!!

check out my cosmic nail art...this was surprisingly easy to do!!! all i did was buy some press-on nail strips...a friend tells me the cheaper ones work better ...these are from"kiss" and this set is "strength and beauty" (it cost only $3, found @ my local drugstore.)

some tips:

-i cut the pre-cut strip down even further with maincure scissors after putting it on my nail-- my nails are very tiny and short...i could use one strip for 2, sometimes 3 nails.

-i lifted them off the backing with a pair of tweezers. and set them down just above the cuticle.

-after pressing them on, i trimmed the edges with a nail clipper.  i used the edge of the tweezer to smooth them into shape, working from the center, out.

-pressed the remaining edges down, folding any small ragged edges down over the edge of the nail

-filed the nails after doing all that...carefully and using a very fine salon board.

all painting/photography in this post (xcept the 'nails of course) is by marilyn minter...she has collaborated with MAC cosmetics in the past. check out more of her artwork

here

I(n)FiNitY....

the poncho came from my local thrift store. the earrings are handmade by TheSkulleryUSA. my boots are from minnetonka, they were a christmas gift from my mom. the blue nail polish is essie's "aruba blue"(#784).

 a friend recently checked out my blog...she really said it best when she wrote,

 " I also have wanted for a long time to stop buying "new" things - this world already has so many manufactured things in it, including in our dumps, so why do we have to keep making more? Anyway, I appreciate your passion for thrifting - it's much more than just a budget thing!"

i've been a thrift-shopper my entire life, not necessarily because i thought i was helping the environment, but because i hardly ever had the $$ to buy new stuff! when i was a kid my friends and i could find incredible true "vintage" pieces at the shops...it's hard  to find good stuff now.  more people are doing it, the shops are very picked-over...i'm not upset at this tho because it means more people are buying less "new" merchandise, and hopefully being more creative with what they alreday have.

a great place to find incredible vintage and handmade is etsy.  this web-based company is amazing. i am addicted to this site, and i'm threatening to open a shop (if i can ever get my SH*T together).  Check out Falke Malum's shop, TheSkulleryUSA, where my pheasant earrings came from, here. 

it is so important to support artists and craftspeople, which is something you can easily do by browsing and buying from etsy's thousands of online shops...just be careful to read each seller's feedback and ask questions if you're not sure about a shop or an item.  i've found the merchants to be very kind, accommodating, and willing to answer questions.

to me, fashion and personal style are an extension of art...it's a constantly evolving journey....thanks 2 my followers for joining me on this one :) xo

gimme some color!!!

it's so rainy and gray today so until the real spring flowers come up, here are some artifical ones...

the spirit of a dress.

one of the things i  LOVE about thrift shopping: sometimes i find a garment with a life of its own. i found this authentic bohemian dress at a Maine goodwill thrift store last year. i believe the dress is from the late 1970s-early 80s. i made the bone necklace this morning for the shoot. (will have to make it more permanent). my mom gave me this soup bone, just wrapped a chain around it.

(and, i finally decided on the neon pink
nail polish)

Life's tough decisions.

nail polish from the ***dollar store***.  these colors all cost only $1!! (i am kind of a spaz when it comes to painting my own nails, so i can't make any designs yet. in brooklyn, the cashier at my local market had THE most incredible nails. wish i had taken some pics of her! i asked her once and she said that it took about 3-4 hours to have them done)

salvation army STYLE !

HAVING AN EYE:
OK. so ...
i realize many of us have ENDLESS good taste, style, and creativity (!!!) but we lack an ENDLESS suppy of $$$$$$$$$$. sometimes, even getting things on sale, or "for less" is not helpful or, even possible!!! being an artist by trade i am always trying to find ways to get around having NO cash. so, i'm starting this new tag "$0.99 store STYLE". i mean, this is REALLY tight budget, as in NO budget

---->i am a FAITHFUL THRIFT-SHOPPER  (my past two trips have been AMAZING, i have found a SONIA BY SONIA RYKIEL dress with THE TAGS STILL ON IT and what i believe to be, AN AUTHENTIC GUCCI BAG !!!)(see pics above--if anyone knows how 2 authenticate the bag, please, lemme know in comments)




Remeber my friends:: NEVER STOP LOOKING FOR INSPIRATION 'CUZ U NEVER KNOW WHERE YOU'LL FIND IT !!!!!